Sunday, 4 March 2012

Kolkata: Vidya Balan starrer 'Kahaani' has run into a controversy with the Kolkata Metro Railway authorities objecting to a scene in the upcoming film where the actress is shown as being pushed perilously before a speeding train.

Metro spokesperson Protyush Ghosh told PTI that the Metro authorities had asked producers of the film to remove the particular clip from their trailers as well as from the film, which releases next Friday.

"We had a meeting with the director recently where he told us that there is nothing objectionable in the film at all. He will submit us a video of the complete scene in a day or two after which we will take the final decision," he said.

The film's trailer shows a pregnant Vidya waiting on the platform to board a train at the Kalighat station. As soon as the train arrives, she is dangerously pushed onto the tracks by a man standing close to her.

A source close to the film said the shot was part of a dream sequence and had been shot using CGI (computer-generated imagery) technique.

The Metro authorities had allowed the film unit to shoot for four days last year at the busy Tollygunj and Kalighat stations, where the controversial scene was filmed.

Frequent suicides on tracks has been a major headache for the Kolkata Metro, which commenced operations from 1984, and there has been around 234 suicide attempts since then.

"We are opposed to the scene as we are very concerned about the rate of suicides on the Metro tracks. We know how people get ideas for committing suicide and for other criminal activities," Kolkata Metro's General Manager P B Murti said.

The Railway authorities wrote to the film's producer claiming that the scene would not only harm the image of the Metro but also leave a negative impact on the audience.

Producer-director Sujoy Ghosh brushed it off as a minor issue.

"I am a Bengali and I know the city like the back of my hand. The scene is not meant to remind people of suicides. Anyways if anybody has to commit suicide, he will not do it because of my film. As a filmmaker I need to show all sides of a city, including the darker aspects," he said.

Lead actress Vidya, too, isn't complaining.

"The Metro officials have been very supportive of us during shooting. We are really thankful to them," said 'The Dirty Picture' star hoping that the issue would be sorted out soon.

'Kahaani' has the 34-year-old actress play a pregnant woman who comes to Kolkata from London in search of her husband. With nothing to rely on except fragments from her memories about him, it is the story of a seven-months pregnant woman's relentless struggle in an unknown city.